


saudade

by bunny093



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Based on a Tumblr Post, Brazilian Hinata Shouyou, Cute Ending, Falling In Love, Fluff and Humor, Friends to Lovers, Haikyuu Week in Brasil 2021, M/M, Romantic Fluff, Slice of Life, Soft Kisses, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, amazon region, no beta we die like the trees in amazon forest, slightly OOC, thats where im from
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-14
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-12 07:21:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,697
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28756557
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bunny093/pseuds/bunny093
Summary: even a language barrier did not prevent shouyou from creating a bond with kenma strong enough for the boy to visit him in brazilthis is the story about how this visit happened| saudade, noun: a deep emotional state of melancholic longing for a person or thing that is absent
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou/Kozume Kenma
Comments: 5
Kudos: 21





	1. beach

**Author's Note:**

> based on this [tumblr post](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/view/bnnywngs/631090442900996096) and originally written in [brazilian portuguese](https://www.spiritfanfiction.com/historia/saudade-21390834)
> 
> also based on a classmate from first year hs on catholic school, her grandparents didn't talk in pt-br and she only knew the basics so she could talk to them, the rest is from my head~ places are real and written from memory (haven't been anywhere since april 2020), and yes, this is my city
> 
> hope you guys enjoy ^^

During his first trip to Japan to visit a part of the family he didn’t know before that, Shouyou ended up meeting Kenma when he got lost in the middle of Tokyo while walking around the city alone to see it and take several pictures to show his classmates in Brazil. Despite his broken japanese that he had learned from living with his grandparents who did not speak portuguese at home and his brief lessons when he was still small, and Kenma's broken english, the two managed to communicate in some way and created a longlast friendship through the internet.

That was almost two years ago, now Kenma would visit him during the summer of his first year as a college student without the full schedule of a volleyball club participant, arguing that since Shouyou had met him in his country, nothing more fair to go where he was to have a balance in their friendship - not mentioning that Kenma’s family was much richer and he could easily afford a ticket to the South American country.

And luckily (or not), the summer at Shouyou’s city was around the same time, so he wouldn't have to worry about the rain or whether or not they could visit somewhere because of it.

After nearly 30 hours of traveling and changing planes two times, Kenma was finally on brazilian soil, his head hurt and everything seemed to spin and wave around him as he walked with his suitcase (bigger than he wanted, but his parents had insisted on make him carry a huge suitcase to carry gifts and anything else he could buy) and looked around for his friend and his parents who had gone to the airport to pick him up.

“Kenma!” it echoed through the airport's almost empty lobby, the red-haired boy waving his hand exaggeratedly before running up to him and hugging him tightly.

This was still a little strange for Kenma, the way Shouyou was so affectionate and hugged him all the time, touching his arm from time to time when he spoke or wanted to show him something - it was something he realized that first day that met in Japan. But maybe it was part of his country's culture? They always said that westerners were more affectionate and were not ashamed of skinship.

“Shouyou.” he sighed in relief, all the tension in his shoulders vanish into that embrace.

“Aah, I'm so glad you're here, Kenma!” the boy said excitedly, messing up some words in his still broken japanese, even though he had improved with the help of his friend and with the cram lessons he had insisted on starting the year before “Come, these are my parents. And my sister!”

“Nice to meet you, I'm Kozume Kenma, Shouyou’s friend, thanks for letting me spend my vacation with you and taking care of me for the next few days.” he said in a low and serious way, bowing almost formally, ignoring the people around him who were watching.

Shouyou's mother, a woman with red hair almost the same color as her children, just laughed softly, waving her hands before placing them on his shoulders “You doesn't have to be so formal, Kenma, I hope you have fun with us next days.”

“Your japanese is very good…” he said, almost amazed “Better than Shouyou’s.”

“Hey!”

The woman laughed again “It’s because he prefers to play with a ball than learn another language. I actually met my husband at a language school event when we were teenagers.”

“It was love at first sight.” the man nodded “Welcome to Manaus, Kenma, don't let our son use all your energies, ok?” he laughed before continuing in portuguese “Introduce yourself Natsu, the way we rehearsed.”

Kenma held a grimace so he wouldn’t be rude while remembering when he studied spanish thinking that this was the language they spoke in his friend's country. He had been so proud of himself for being able to memorize some phrases in a language that was so different from his own, only to discover that Shouyou didn't even speak a word in spanish. He was still embarrassed.

“My name is Natsu, nice to meet you. Welcome.” the little girl said, looking suspiciously, probably shy in front of a stranger.

“Obrigado.” he thanked in portuguese with a heavy accent, making the girl smile happily and say something too quickly for him to understand.

(Kenma had spent sleepless nights studying portuguese before traveling, too preoccupied with not being embarrassed or being made fun of while in the country. He couldn't depend on Shouyou for everything, after all)

They walked together exchanging a few words to where the car was parked after waiting for the father to pay for parking. It was all very different and strange for Kenma, but his brain was too overwhelmed to pay attention to details. What struck him most was the heat he felt at the very moment the automatic doors opened, his skin starting to sweat almost immediately inside his sweatshirt.

He could feel it was summer even though it was just over three in the morning.

“Tomorrow afternoon I’m going to play volleyball with my friends at Ponta Negra and I’ll take you to see it, okay?” Shouyou said with a bright smile “I know you played at your school so it would be nice if you played with us, but you told me you didn't…. Er… like it? Don't you like to try…?”

Kenma laughed softly and nodded “I don't like to waste energy. But I don't mind watching you play. Your japanese still sucks.”

“I know…” he said, showing his tongue “And your portuguese is not very good either, ok?”

The adults laughed at that phrase, Kenma taking the opportunity to pinch his friend's arm.

The house looked big, but his eyelids were heavy and it felt like every wink took a full minute. Soon he was guided to Shouyou's room, taking a quick shower before putting on pajamas from his backpack and tucking under the sheet on his friend's big bed. He barely noticed when he fell asleep, waking up almost frightened by the alarm clock ringing somewhere in a room that was strange to him. It took him a few long seconds to remember where he was and with whom.

“Good morning…” came the murmur in portuguese beside him after the irritating noise of the alarm clock had been turned off, the redhead's voice groggy and hoarse as he yawned and scratched his eyes.

“Good morning.” he replied in japanese, sinking his face into the fluffy pillow with a sigh “Do we really need to leave today?”

“Kenma ~”

The japanese man laughed, always liked how Shouyou's voice stretched his name every time he was muttering something to or about him.

“It's already lunchtime, so we'll have to skip breakfast, okay?”

Kenma just nodded, taking the opportunity to stretch and yawn while still in bed.

The noises that were previously low and muffled that you couldn't hear from inside the room, got louder as soon as the air conditioning (he didn't even remember the existence of the device when he went to sleep) was turned off and the bedroom’s door was open. There was talking, the sound of pots and laughter, along with the television on what appeared to be the local newspaper.

“Shouyou, did you see a bag?” he asked, looking around his suitcase.

“With the gift for my parents? You delivered it before going up.”

“Huh...?” was he so sleepy when they arrived? He ended up shrugging and continued what he was doing.

Having lunch with Shouyou's family was very different from what he was used to in his own home, they kept talking to each other while eating, shared the food (sometimes using their own silverware) and the food itself was different. He was pleased to see that no one complained about him eating little or asked uncomfortable questions about the taste of the food.

It was not long before they were leaving the house, Kenma was a little surprised to realize that on the other side of the street there was a forest. It was like the cliché comments he had found on the internet about the city and the forest around it - extremely famous for several reasons. Shouyou guided him through the empty streets until they reached an equally empty bus stop, which was just a blue sign at the edge of the sidewalk and nothing more.

Kenma felt as if he were in a parallel reality with the almost deafening noise inside the clearly old bus, sliding from side to side in the uncomfortable seat while Shouyou explained to him about some things and pointed to others with excitement. They stopped in an extremely loud, hot and busy place, waiting for a long time for another equally old bus full of people that almost fought their way inside.

‘Ponta Negra’ was nothing more than a stretch of sand at the edge of a dark river, which Shouyou proudly called beach. There was a wide, long boardwalk, perhaps bigger than the beach itself, full of people walking, talking and having fun with something, especially children. They went to a structure that was peculiar to him - a volleyball court with sand surrounded by large concrete steps that also served as a stand. There were already some people playing, their clothes ranging from shirts and shorts, to small, tight swimwear.

“Beach volleyball?” he asked, confused.

Shouyou nodded with a big smile on his face “Those are the friends I made while playing.”

Kenma sighed with a smile, that was so Shouyou, making friends wherever he went, regardless of age (or even the language barrier). He was a little startled by the screams that his friend and the players exchanged, he understood not a word exchanged, but waving back slowly when they waved at him. Although it was easy to see when they were teasing Shouyou because of his adorable reaction.

“Come on, Kenma, I want to show you the beach.” the redhead said, holding his hand almost gently.

It was cute to see Shouyou so excited as he tried to explain some things around in japanese, especially names. He ended up taking a picture of his feet in the cold, dark water, sending it to his best friend with a joke with his name (since the river is called Rio Negro, or black/dark river). He wasn’t in his element, no doubt, but with Shouyou holding his hand, Kenma managed to ignore the uncomfortable feeling of the sun on his skin.

He had put on sunscreen before leaving his friend's house after his mother said it was best for him, but he had to confess that he thought that factor 50 would not help at all.

He ended up buying a glass of cold juice, taking it calmly as they went up a slope to a lookout that Shouyou had insisted on showing, almost at the end of the boardwalk. And he ended up taking more pictures, including a selfie with his friend and one alone where he looked at the landscape, because of the beautiful view he could see from there.

They walked calmly back to where the beach volleyball court was, past an outdoor gym and several street vendors and food carts, and even a big amphitheater. When they came down the wide concrete stairs, Shouyou finally let go of his hand, which left him confused because he didn't even realize they were still holding hands.

“Bom jogo.” he said, his voice low and his accent as heavy as ever, but there was a small smile on his lips.

Shouyou seemed to shine after hearing that, his smile widening and his cheeks turning slightly pink. And, wow - Kenma wanted to kiss him here and now. The redhead looked around, seeming embarrassed, and nodded saying that he would be back soon and that Kenma was to watch him carefully.

There was no way he would take his eyes off Shouyou.

He played as if his life depended on the point he was going to make, but at the same time he seemed to be enjoying himself like a child in a playground. He shone like the sun itself with every extremely high jump he took, with every quick run across the net from one corner to another, with every slam was it good or not, every time he wiped the sweat from his forehead with the hem of his shirt.

No one could really judge when Kenma's heart missed several beats as he watched from his place in the shade, letting out little soft sounds of awe whenever Shouyou was the star of the point made. And he no longer even cared about the sand flying from the jumps and falls, to the ball that sometimes flew dangerously into the stands, or to the intense heat he felt even with his light clothes and cold juice.

He was probably still amazed at all that, with Shouyou and his brilliant intensity, when he agreed to play a set or two, dropping his shoes on the bleachers next to his friend's bag, a girl smiling and saying something while pointing at their belongings. He nodded without really understanding what had happened, but he knew that she was one of the friends that Shouyou had introduced him earlier and what name he had totally forgotten.

He quickly learned the names of the other players on his team and their positions, having the help of Shouyou (who insisted on staying on the same team) to translate quickly and almost confusing everyone. He felt the ball in his hands - it had been a long time since he last played it, but the texture and weight of the ball remained the same and he let a smile appear on his face when he felt a wave of nostalgia.

For a second, he missed his clubmates - his friends.

“Kenma!” Shouyou called, jumping before the ball even touched his fingers.

Ah… He didn't even blink when he aimed the ball at the redhead, watching where all his movements were, paying minimal attention to the point itself - how the muscles in Shouy’s arm tensed, how his smile grew, how his hair moved with movement and wind…

Ah, Kenma loved Shouyou. There was no longer any doubt in his heart.

There, in that moment, in that second that seemed to pass in slow motion, Kenma was sure that he was really in love with Shouyou.


	2. soccer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm sorry for disappearing for so long ;;; as soon as i posted the first translated chapter my city went down a major health collapse and it affected everyone here, including me, and we all lost someone close to us because of it, there's literally no one who can't say they didn't lost someone, family or friend or even a teacher - it was pure chaos with no medicine, no oxygen and all the politicians did nothing to help
> 
> i went through a big emotional stress and we all though i was positive too and it made it all worse, but fortunately now i'm better and can sleep again, therefore i can come back to translate this without bursting out crying
> 
> i'm sorry again, and thank you for waiting ;;;;

After the game of sand volleyball (it could be considered a beach game? It wasn't exactly on the beach, but… it was by the beach…? Ah, this is too confusing), which had been too intense to be just leisure, enough to draw the attention of several people who were just passing by and who decided to stop to observe and cheer, the group was talking among themselves. Kenma was nervous about all the interaction, but Shouyou took his hand and gave a squeeze with a smile, which made him calmer.

It was all still very strange for him and not knowing what the people around him were saying made him uncomfortable and with a twinge of fear. But it was okay, Shouyou was with him.

They went down to the beach in a large group, parting as soon as they reached the sand with pats on the back and shoulders, and a few hugs, people waving a smile at the Japanese. Shouyou took him to the public toilet, where he had several taps outside to get the sand off his feet and sandals before heading back to the boardwalk above the beach.

“They called us to a bar, but I said that you were tired and to leave for another day.” Shouyou said with a smile, pulling him by the hand to an ice cream kiosk.

The sun was starting to drop over the horizon, making the sky a beautiful shade of pink and blue, the clouds looking more like cotton candy than ever.

“Thanks.” Kenma smiled back, squeezing the fingers intertwined with his. He loved it when Shouyou was understanding, when he was able to read his humor so subtly “What are we going to do now?”

“Ice cream! The Glacial is my favorite, Kenma, you need to eat!”

Kenma let out a laugh, his free hand covering his mouth “Your Japanese is so bad.”

“Hey…” Shouyou made a petulant expression, like a disgruntled child, before having his attention stolen by the bored-looking attendant.

He understood almost nothing of the words exchanged, much less the amount of money, but he knew that his friend had thanked them and nodded without saying anything to the attendant, taking a few steps to the side to get his cups of ice cream.

“Cupuaçu.” Shouyou said slowly, pointing to the white ice cream scoop in the cup between Kenma's hands “Açaí.” he pointed to himself, in a purple redish color.

“What is… cupuaçu…?” he asked, using the wooden stick to get some and taste it “Hmm, yummy.”

“Right?” Shouyou laughed “It's a fruit… Er… From here?”

“Native?”

“What is ‘native’?”

Kenma shook his head with a sigh “Ask your father later, he can explain.”

He ended up tasting his friend's ice cream too, making a little grimace at the taste - it wasn't as good as what Shouyou had chosen for him. They sat on the grass a few meters ahead in silence as they watched the river below and the cars passing by on the big cable-stayed bridge. It was quiet, even with the noise of children in the playground and people walking around while talking or laughing.

Shouyou looked at him for a moment before getting closer, leaning against his shoulders slowly almost as if asking for permission. It was quiet there and Kenma wanted to be able to live that moment forever.

They returned home after ordering a car by an app, Kenma looking around the city and how many cars were on the streets (there were many) while Shouyou talked to the driver. There were more buildings than he expected and he ended up feeling disappointed in himself because of that - Shouyou would probably laugh if he spoke it out loud.

“Kenma, what do you think about playing video games when you get home?” the redhead asked, eyes shining with a hesitation that seemed out of place on his face.

“It depends on the games you have.” he smirked, challenging his friend.

Shouyou laughed, pushing him with his shoulder.

After some dangerous turns and an unnecessary acceleration on the part of the driver, they arrived at the redhead's house without any problems and were greeted by an excited Natsu talking quickly about something. Shouyou knelt answering what was being said and nodding with the same excitement as the little one, which he found adorable.

“Welcome back.” said the mother “How was your day? Did Kenma have fun?”

“Thanks.” he murmured “I had fun, yes.”

The night passed quietly, the family eating in the living room watching television while the boys ate in Shouyou's room eagerly playing a fighting game, the redhead let out screams every time he hit a combo or a mere punch or kick, amusing the japanese. They slept in the same bed as the night before, talking a little about the day until their voices were weakened by sleep and Shouyou didn’t make sense anymore, mixing portuguese with japanese.

The next day, they woke up earlier and Kenma could see the breakfast table that seemed to be normal for the Hinatas - a rather strange bread that looked like a baguette, but much smaller and chubbier, that he heard it was called French bread and another name he couldn’t comprehend; a white, wet cheese filled with holes that they called rennet cheese (and what a strange name!); some orange strips of something edible, which they said were tucumã, another fruit native to the region; and white sand that was put in a frying pan and turned into a kind of hard and thin pancake, which was called tapioca. He couldn't deny that it was all very good when he bit his bread with the white cheese and tucumã, it was striking and strong, salty and savory, he knew it would never leave his memory, but very good and he also couldn't deny a second portion, this time exchanging bread for tapioca.

(Kuroo would be proud if he were here)

As the only thing on their agenda was a fair by sunset, the two had the rest of the day free, so they decided to continue the game from the previous night until lunchtime and then Kenma watched the siblings play soccer with their father in the backyard, laughing every time one of them missed the kick or the ball hit someone in the face.

Kenma thought he was going to be uncomfortable at his friend's house, not knowing how to act (and he still didn't know exactly what to say and how to act, it was only his second day there, after all), but they were all very polite and warm, trying to leave him as comfortable as possible and speaking in his native language so as not to leave him out of conversations however superficial they might be and Kenma was happy about it. And Shouyou was amazing, much more than he remembered or what it looked like online.

Kenma loved Shouyou.

With a low sigh, he sank deeper into the porch chair on the patio, almost as if he wanted to disappear from his friend's line of sight. Which was clearly impossible.

“Kenma!” his eyes quickly went to where he could hear Shouyou's voice, who ran towards him “Come play, too!” it took a while to understand, since with his excitement, the redhead spoke in portuguese.

“I don't know how to play…” he looked over to where his friend's younger sister was hugging the ball while she complained about something and her father laughed and nodded and agreed with whatever she was saying.

“It's easy, come.” Shouyou grabbed his hand and pulled him onto the lawn, shouting something to his father, who approached him with a smile.

“Playing soccer is easy, you just need to kick the ball in the direction of the goal and hope that the goalkeeper, me, don’t catch the ball.” he laughed “And you need to dodge the other players, you can't let them catch the ball from your feet. And no hands on the ball, okay?”

Kenma nodded and turned to his friend “Just a game, okay?”

Shouyou made a face, but ended up nodding “Ok…”

He looked at the old yellowish ball and winced. Why couldn't he say no to Shouyou? That would be his undoing one day, he was sure. He sighed and looked up, watching the siblings wait anxiously for his first kick and he felt a little pressured, so he ended up kicking anyway, making the ball go to the completely opposite side than he intended.

They were silent for a second before they burst out laughing, Kenma hiding his face behind his hands in shame.

“It's okay, it's okay, nobody is born knowing how to kick.” the father said, throwing the ball back to Kenma.

“Are you sure that brazilians aren’t born knowing how to play soccer?” he asked back, looking at the ball as if the object had offended him and his entire family - or worse, offended Shouyou.

The father laughed out loud and nodded “Soccer and volleyball, maybe.”

He took a deep breath and paid better attention to his surroundings, seeing the distance between him and the improvised goal, calculating trajectories, kicking strength and how they would run towards him, trying to remember all the (few) games he had watched during his life and rehearsing in his mind how he should dribble. He put his foot on top of the ball before kicking the way he thought it would go straight into the goal, without having to run or dodge his “opponents”.

But he ended up throwing the ball at Natsu's feet, who quickly controlled it and threw it into the goal, her father being too slow to react.

Oh, what the hell, and he calculated it so well.

“Goooooool!” the little one screamed as she ran with her arms up.

“That kick was great, Kenma!” Shouyou said, smiling brightly in his direction and suddenly all the bad feelings were gone and the japanese wanted to continue playing with him.

“Thanks.”

Unfortunately, he already felt exhausted the second time he had to kick trying to look like a great player in the eyes of his friend and running and deflecting until he fell and lost the ball to Natsu again. Who was he trying to deceive?

“Do you want to play another Kenma?” the redhead asked excitedly.

He wished he could say yes, he  _ really _ wanted to say yes, but… “Better not…”

“Ah…” Shouyou made a sad face, ready to argue back when his left cheek was pulled painfully by his own father.

“You have to stop this bad habit of wanting to make people do what you want, Shouyou.” he said, shaking his head.

“But!”

“You can rest, Kenma, no one can follow the stamina of these two mini athletes.”

Kenma laughed at the comment, placing one hand in front of his mouth to disguise and nodded “I'll be watching again, thanks.”

He went back to the chair that he was before, taking his forgotten phone and opening one of the several games he had, even though he knew he would neglect it to watch his friend play. And that's what exactly happened. Kenma even blushed a little when he saw Shouyou take off his shirt and swing over his head after scoring a goal (only his second after taking several of his younger sister).

He couldn't help but laugh at the takedowns and wrong kicks that kept happening from time to time - mostly from Shouyou, who apparently was better at volleyball than soccer.

Who knew, he was having fun watching an amateur soccer match in the back of his friend's house in a country that was on the other side of the world. He had to take a picture and send it to Kuroo and show that he was happy, that he wasn't bored and he didn't even miss him.

(even though he was, yes, missing his best friend, but he didn't need to know, did he?)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i made some changes in this version because of the difference in language, but it's basically the same thing ^^
> 
> [ponta negra](https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Praia_da_Ponta_Negra_\(Manaus\)) beach (in pt-br)


	3. fair

The sun could no longer be seen on the horizon, only its dim light as the darkness of the night arrived almost silently when they arrived at the fair, leaving the car parked on a nearby street and walking to the square where Shouyou had told him it was the city’s ground zero.

If Kenma was sincere and not afraid to offend his friend's family, he would say out loud that he felt in the middle of a european square. There was an iron bandstand large enough to fit several people with their phones taking pictures right in the middle of the square, along with a large fountain, in front of a large white building with large columns that to Kenma looked like a façade of some Greek temple. Around it were other buildings that were equally european, and newer ones, but that seemed to have come straight out of the 1960s, one of them dirty and faded.

“Kenma! I want to show you the museum in the white building!” Shouyou said happily, holding his hand and preparing to pull him towards the place, but being stopped by a hand on his shoulder.

“Let's go for a walk first before going to the museum.” his mother said, adding something in Portuguese that the japanese didn’t understand.

The redhead ended up nodding, even though he was making an upset expression, but he didn’t let go of his friend's hand, interlacing their fingers with a smile and pulling him closer. Was this a local custom? Holding hands? He looked around fearfully, afraid of having people staring at them with some kind of look that would make him uncomfortable, but no one even looked at the small group they made, walking down the cobbled street between craft tents.

He ended up distracting himself with his friend pointing to several different things, telling him about the objects and making cute sounds when he liked something.

“If you want to buy more local things as gifts, we can go to the sunday fair or the city market, what do you think?” the mother asked with a smile.

Kenma nodded “I appreciate it.”

They continued walking around, Kenma being introduced to foods that were almost alien to him, the smells mixing and making his stomach start to shake with the anxiety of being able to taste one of the available dishes (even if he was naturally a person who eats little and demanding tastes). He made a short video of the place with Shouyou smiling and waving at the end, to send to friends in their group chat, laughing softly at the comments he had received about being jealous of his vacation and some food screams.

Kuroo texted him privately commenting on Shouyou, how he seemed to be happy and asking if Kenma was being treated well at his home, being clearly relieved when he received a positive response from his best friend.

He just smiled with those last messages, feeling extremely loved by his only fraternal figure, not that he was going to say it out loud (never, Kuroo would never let him forget, otherwise).

When they finished walking around the square, Kenma getting a little irritated by the path of irregular stones that formed the streets around it, they walked calmly towards the museum, stopping to admire the paintings of a local artist who was right in front. He looked at the stage quickly as they crossed the street, feeling a bit of curiosity about what was going to happen later and thinking that he would surely get a headache later because of the loud sound coming from the large speakers.

With the help of his friend's father's translation, Kenma enjoyed the tour of the museum, marveling at the elaborate architecture of the mayors' room (or was it governors’? He didn't remember very well now), with the simple and very well done explanation about the local ecosystem, smiling with Shouyou trying to find his own neighborhood on the old map projected on a piece of wood.

He found the glass on the floor interesting to show the foundation and the wooden barrels in the middle of the main hall where he could lean over and see stories and old folklore tales being told, and even though he only understood a few words and understood even less his friend's translation attempt, he ended up accompany an entire story about a type of pink dolphin that transformed into a man in a white suit.

“Boto, not dolphin.” Shouyou said, wrinkling his nose “It's different.”

He laughed, but nodded “Okay.”

Around the main hall there was what appeared to be local products, a market according to a sign he read in english. There was the yellow sand that he had seen at meals (“It's farinha, Kenma!”) And some rudimentary objects. A giant leaf and a wooden boat (“It's not a boat, it's a canoe!”) Were the ones that caught his attention the most, making him stop for long minutes to admire.

It was there that they separated from their parents and Natsu, going in different directions with laughter and waves.

They got into another room, this one darker and with more projections, but this time it was the city's timeline on top of a structure with water that formed two rivers, which Shouyou said were the two main ones that bathed the city and the state and that he would see up close in a few days when they left on the boat trip they had scheduled even before the japanese got on the plane.

Then they went to a lighter room, where there were some televisions, showing some pictures and videos, which kept Kenma entertained for a long time, asking Shouyou for help in understanding the explanations and asking if he knew the objects. They met the rest of the family there, talking a little before going on their way.

“Ah! There's one like that at my mom's mom's house!” the redhead laughed “It's super normal to have a hammock in the houses here, ours broke the day you arrived and we still need to buy a new one.” his expression was kind of sad and Kenma felt curious.

They went to the last part of the museum, according to Shouyou, which was an equally dark room with several screens with people standing and with a projection of water on the floor of the room, each telling its story in portuguese. Shouyou stopped him in front of a Japanese immigrant's screen, animatedly translating the story he was telling and he was sure Kenma would think the same thing when they went on a boat (“It's a lot of water!” the immigrant says in his monologue, remembering the day he first arrived in the state by boat).

Soon after finishing their monologues, people would jump in the water behind them (the Rio Negro, Kenma remembered) and appear in the projection on the ground swimming. It was incredible and totally different from the things he had seen before and Kenma wanted to watch three more people talking before they finally finished and left.

They met the others by the information desk, deciding to go look for food and sit at one of the tables that were available for free. The adults asked what Kenma thought of the museum and the japanese was sincere in saying that he liked it a lot.

There was a large picnic table that was empty and Shouyou took a short run to it, sitting down with a smile and waiting for the rest of his group to arrive. Kenma had to turn his face and cover his mouth with one hand to hide his laughter, before going to sit next to his friend, Natsu sitting on his other side with a big smile and starting to speak in japanese better than her older brother.

This seemed to irritate the redhead a little, who hugged his shoulders with one arm and pulled him against his body, complaining to his sister that Kenma was his friend.

“Shouyou.” his father said in a more serious tone, looking at him for a moment before turning to Kenma “What would you like to eat?”

“Hmm…” he looked around, at the various people walking from side to side, at the various stalls selling food and felt confused and pressured.

“Dad, let me go with Kenma to find what to eat.” Shouyou said.

“Ok then.” he nodded and went with his wife to one of the tents.

“What are you going to eat, Kenma-nii?” Natsu asked “Shou-chan is going to order tacacá as usual and I don't like tacacá.” the little girl grimaced, wrinkling her nose with her eyes closed.

“Ta…  _ ca _ ca…?”

“Taca _ cá. _ It's a bad soup.” the little one said.

“Hey, tacacá is good!” Shouyou complained behind him.

“What is it?” he turned to look at his friend.

“Native!” Shouyou exclaimed, his eyes shining with the happiness of finally knowing what that word meant and making his friend and sister laugh at his excitement.

“It’s a native soup?” he laughed a little, tilting his head.

“You’re going to see ~ Want to eat with me?”

Kenma just nodded.

As soon as the redhead's parents returned to the table with two plastic plates with meat skewers and garnishes and a rectangle of fried dough that Natsu called pastel, eating almost at the same time she put her hands on the food, Shouyou stood up one hand to get his father's credit card and using the other to pull Kenma with him.

They went to a stand full of people leaving with a black bowl on top of a straw basket and blowing what looked like a soup, which the japanese soon linked to the tacacá that they had been commenting on the table before. He let Shouyou place the order while waiting a few steps back, watching his friend speak in his mother tongue with a serious tone before letting out a smile and walking away.

(no one needed to know that Kenma's heart had tripped a beat when he saw that smile)

“How are you thinking about this?” he pointed around with an almost serene smile.

Kenma nodded with a small smile “I'm enjoying it.”

“I know you don't like places full of people, but… I want to show you everything I like in my city.” he looked away a little, his fingers playing with the hem of his shirt. Kenma couldn't help thinking that it was all very adorable in Shouyou.

“Thanks for thinking about me.” Kenma pushed him lightly with his own shoulder.

Shouyou's attention was stolen by someone from the tent calling for him to deliver the bowl of soup. They walked calmly to the family table, the redhead blowing his soup lightly and handing two skewers stick and tissues for Kenma to hold. He didn't quite understand what the sticks were for, but he helped his friend to sit at the table without dropping the soup that almost overflowed from the bowl (which didn't seem to be made of either porcelain or clay, it was a strange object with drawings that made him curious).

Shouyou set the bowl down on the table and picked up one of the sticks “Like this.” he said, looking at Kenma for a quick moment before looking back at the soup, putting the stick in the liquid and stirring. That was when the japanese realized that there was more to it than just greenish-yellow water - there were large leaves and shrimp floating around.

The stick came back from the soup carrying one of the leaves, being taken to the redhead's mouth who chewed it and then drank some of the liquid by tilting the bowl. He offered it to Kenma, who hesitated before using the extra stick to imitate his friend. With a little fear about the taste, he ended up ignoring the leaves and punctured one of the shrimp, chewing a little before drinking the soup. He wrinkled his nose a little with the strong, striking taste, savoring a little on his tongue before taking another sip.

“It's good.” he nodded “But it's hot. It is strange to drink something hot in this heat.”

“Ha!” the redhead exclaimed loudly, turning to his sister and starting to speak something in portuguese that Kenma couldn’t understand, but knew what it meant. He smiled, drinking more of the soup and piercing another shrimp to eat.

After they finished and returned the bowl (which Shouyou said is called cuia) to the tent from before, Shouyou decided that he wanted Kenma to try a cake that he loved and that the japanese could not pronounce the name in any way. They ended up being content to call it  _ nesuto _ , which would be the equivalent of nest in japanese after consulting a translator and getting a fun laugh from the lady who sold the cakes.

“Ah, I think this is my favorite.” Kenma said after the first mouthful “I really liked it, Shouyou. And it’s made from powdered milk for kids?”

The redhead nodded, swallowing what he chewed before replying “I think this only sells here. I like it a lot and when mixed with chocolate it gets even better.”

Shouyou smiled happily, the corner of his mouth smeared with the powdered milk from the top of the icing on the cake and Kenma wiped it with the tip of his thumb without thinking twice, which initially made him uncomfortable before remembering it was just Shouyou and his heart went wild inside his chest, but the redhead didn't seem to mind, continuing to eat with a happy expression.

He wondered how his friend would react if he kissed him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the fair they go is called 'feira do paço' and paço is one of the names of the white building, where the museu da cidade de manaus (museum of the city) is
> 
> the square is named dom pedro ii (or pedro/peter ii of brazil, our second and last monarch)


End file.
